Abstract:The strength and failure of a laminated composite involvesmany mechanisms and its analysis is very complicated in nature. Manytheories about strength and failure have been proposed in the literature based on differentphysical, mechanical or logical considerations. Their applicabilityshould be put into test with respect to practical problems. A``Failure Olympics'' on composite laminates, supported by the UKEngineering andPhysical Sciences Research Council and the UK Institution of Mechanical Engineers,was launched in 1999, and completed in 2004. This paper briefly reviews andsummarizes the current status of researches on the strength of fiber-reinforcedcomposites based on the results from the ``Failure Olympics", with a discussion onsome topics that need to be addressed in the future development.